The Curse Of Ivy

by Josephine Aubrey

  Later, when Flannel exited the library, after being questioned, he was in good humor. He told Hannah she was next because she had number two. Hannah was not as agreeable as Flannel had been. To her, all of this drama not only seemed unnecessary, but was also really just an intrusion. She walked into the library with an attitude and was disagreeable throughout the session.

  Rand had known Hannah since he was a child. He knew how she was. She was from the old school where the wealthy were usually not subjected to such things. He could see that from Hannah’s point of view, being questioned by the police was undignified and perhaps beneath her. Because of this, he tried not to offend her. When she left the library, her attitude had not improved much. She went right to her room and asked for tea to be served in the comfort of her own space.

  The interrogations continued all morning. By lunchtime Patricia’s number was up. The detectives, Rob McNally and Grant Cameron returned to headquarters for lunch and to regroup. The Grayson family ate sandwiches in the dining room, except for Hannah who was still secluded in her room.

  When the detectives returned from lunch, everyone was in the library. There were greetings all around, and then they all filed out except Patricia. She was aware that Rand Cameron was Grant Cameron’s son, and Grant Cameron was her uncle’s lawyer. As he questioned her, she could not help notice that he was a lovely man, well mannered and handsome. After answering all of their questions, the young men thanked her for her patience, and she left the library.

  The interrogations continued for most of the day. When they were finished, the two detectives gathered their equipment and left the manor. They would return to headquarters where they would compile and organize all of the information they had collected with the hope that there would be clues to answer the question, “who tried to kill Flannel Grayson using injections of insulin?”

  The next day, flannel informed everyone that he had invited Rand Cameron to Grayson Manor for dinner. He reminded Patricia that he had known Rand all of his life and was fond of him. “He seemed very nice Uncle Flannel,“ she said. “I hope they can learn something from all of the questioning they did yesterday.” she added. “Although I would love to ask him about that, I don’t think that it would be appropriate. So, that won’t necessarily be a part of our conversation at dinner. It doesn’t matter. I haven’t spent any time with Rand in a while. This will give us a chance to catch up.”

  Because they were expecting a visitor, Patricia changed into a summer dress and sandals for the occasion. When she came downstairs, Flannel noticed that she had chosen a becoming dress and had done something with her hair. He smiled to himself. “You just never know,” he thought.

  At dinner, Patricia was painfully aware of their handsome guest and enjoyed, at times, being included in the conversation. Hannah was silent, quietly observing the appearance of things.

  After dinner, Flannel and Rand found a quiet corner where they reviewed what had been happening in city, state, and national politics, since they’re last visit. Later the two of them moved closer to the fire where Patricia and Hannah lingered. Justin had excused himself after dinner. No one knew where he had gone.

  It was getting late when Rand stood and thanked Flannel for an interesting evening. When he walked past Patricia, he asked if he could speak to her in private. “Sure,” she said and followed him into the foyer. “Would you like to have dinner with me sometime, May I call you?” “Yes. That would be nice. You have my number.” She answered. ”Yes, thank you. I will call. Goodnight.” “Goodnight.” she answered and he was gone.

  Flannel aware of the exchange maintained a studied straight face to keep from grinning. Patricia caught herself humming the next day, but the call from Rand never came. She told herself that he was busy, but she still felt rejected.

  Chapter Eighteen

  One evening, when her uncle had retired to his room early, Patricia was sitting in the rose garden in her favorite arbor when, leaning back, she looked long at the back of Grayson Manor. The manor was huge, and she knew that she had only seen a few of the rooms. Having nothing to do and it being still relatively early, Patricia had the sudden urge to look around the manor.

  She entered the house near the back stairs where it was simple to climb all the way to the third floor. There, next to the third floor landing was a door that led to the veranda as seen from the road on the first day at the manor when she had approached from the road. From this height, she saw the lawn and the river from a different perspective. There was a panoramic view up and down the Ohio River, which must have been useful in the Grayson’s heyday when the river was the main link to commerce and travel.

  Reentering the house, Patricia saw another door across the hall near the stairs. When she tried to open the door, she discovered that it was locked. Moving on down the hallway away from the stairs, she first turned to her right. After opening several doors, she found that there were two sets of suites of rooms on each side of the hallway. Each suite had a sitting room, bedroom, and bath. Of course she passed over her Uncle Flannel’s room. She assumed that that was the same setup on the other side of the stairway. Upon returning to the stairs she turned to the locked door again to open it thinking maybe the knobbed was jammed with disuse. No luck.

  After exploring the second floor and finding single bedrooms, with baths, she went down to the library, puzzling about the locked room. Why would her Uncle Flannel lock a room? Or, maybe he hadn’t. Maybe Hannah had it locked, or maybe it was used for storage. Well, she was curious as a cat, so she decided to get the key from the kitchen where she had seen an impressive key caddy. Looking through the keys, she could not find one with the right label until she opened a drawer below the caddy where she discovered a key labeled, Carol’s room. “Really,” Patricia said out loud. She wasted no time returning to the locked room upstairs.

  Trying not to make any noise, Patricia soon had the room unlocked. When she felt the lock turn, her curiosity and excitement was palpable. It doesn’t take much to entertain me she thought, and laughed out loud.

  When she swung the door open, it took a minute to take in the contents of the room. It was difficult to see because the only light in the room came from heavily draped windows. Squinting to see in the dim light, she bumped into a table. Finding the light switch, Patricia was surprised to see a beautiful life-sized portrait of her mother adorning the space above the white ornate fireplace. On the mantle and scattered around on the occasional table were snapshots of her mother and a young man who looked very much like a very young Flannel Grayson. Reaching down, she straightened the pictures of her mother that she had knocked over.

  The young intruder understood the significance of the hidden room with the large portrait and endless photos sprinkled around the room. The depth of feeling implied here touched her heart, and she wondered what had happened. It was obvious that for Flannel Grayson, this room was evidence of a love lost. The young girl was mystified. Her hopes and dreams for a future and family were touched and affected by this heart-breaking evidence of how far things can go wrong.

  Patricia remembering how happy her mother and father had been, wondered how Flannel had been involved. Did her mother know about Flannel’s infatuation with her? Maybe this explained why the brothers were estranged, and if that was true, this secluded room was off limits to her and all other prying eyes.

  Patricia, feeling like an intruder, realized that this room was a shrine to her mother. Herein also lay the answer to the mystery as to why the two Grayson brothers had not spoken for all of those years. Vowing to never let her Uncle Flannel know that she had entered this room, she locked the door, returned the key to the caddy, and took Snuffles out for his last run for the evening.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Tonight, at the dinner table, Hannah was talking. She talked about her prize roses, and she talked about Grayson Manor and the festive parties they had there in the old days. “In those days, when Phoebe and I were young, a party could last all night. We danced a
nd played cards until the sun came up,” she said seeming to be transported back into another time.

  Then Hannah began to talk about the fact that there was a cave on Grayson Manor property. “As a matter-of-fact it is located right out there near the lawn down by the river.” After she had the complete attention of the young people, and with Flannel looking on with tolerance, Hannah began to talk about the history of the old cave and the connection to the Grayson family history.

  “In the days of prohibition, way before my time you know, one of the Grayson boys ran a liquor smuggling business out of that old cave right down there in front of the manor. He got away with it too. From what I understand, he made the Grayson’s very rich.” And she laughed out loud, which was not at all like her.

  “Now, now, Hannah. Don’t go and tell all of our family secrets.” Flannel said to Hannah finding her over imbibing a bit funny. They were all aware that Hannah had probably had too much wine, which was also unlike her

  “You didn’t know that we had a cave on the family property, did you Justin?” She said, suspecting that Justin was using the cave for something illegal, and enjoying his discomfort. “No Auntie, you will have to show me. It sounds like an adventure,” he said looking quite innocent. “Justin, I really did think that you knew that cave was there.” Hannah said looking at Justin teasingly, and then she again laughed aloud.

  “Auntie Hannah, are you all right?” Justin said leaning in to his aunt with concern. “I am fine dear. I just thought you young people might find that interesting. There are also stories of how that old cave was used as a safe haven for slaves on their way to the river and freedom. The cave was a link in the underground railway. The Grayson clan are good folks, always was,” she added.

  As if she had reached the end of a performance, Hannah went slack in her chair, and her eyes became half-lidded. “Auntie Hannah, won’t you let me see you to your room?” Justin insisted showing concern for his aunt. “No, no, I want my tea by the fire, and then I will say goodnight.

  As Hannah tried to stand, Flannel and Justin went to her and walked with her into the library where there was a small blaze burning in the fireplace. When the tea was brought in, Hannah sipped some of hers and then sat back with her eyes closed. Hannah wasn’t asleep. In the haze created by the wine, Hannah visited her past, where all hope of having a family of her own had died. The warmth from the fire had made her drowsy, yet her mind was racing. Talk of the old cave had awakened feelings and memories of Grayson Manor that she had locked away and buried a long time ago.

  A young Hannah had met her lover at one of many social gatherings always in progress at Grayson Manor. His name was Jeff Blanchard, and he had asked her to dance. She was flattered. He was handsome, and Hannah knew that she was plain. Phoebe was the pretty one. Phoebe was sought after by all of the eligible young bachelors in their social group. She later married Jack Grayson, one of the most sought after bachelors in Louisville.

  After they danced, to Hannah’s surprise and delight, Jeff pursued her all evening. After the party, he asked to see her again. They began a love affair, and then he asked her to marry him. Hannah was ecstatic and felt that she was living in a dream, until one evening Jeff revealed to her that he thought that she was a member of the Grayson family. When he learned that she was not a Grayson and had no money, he then distanced himself from her, and then broke off the engagement.

  After the first shock of rejection, Hannah grew anxious. She had a much bigger problem than dealing with the love of her life running out on her. She was pregnant. She had not told Jeff, because she was afraid that he would leave her. Instead he had left her because he was only interested in marrying someone with money, and she didn’t have any.

  Her life shattered, Hannah kept to herself. Phoebe, aware that Jeff was no longer interested in her sister, tried to console Hannah in her grief, Later when Hannah’s thickening figure revealed the truth, Phoebe became desperate to help Hannah and to save the family name. Things were different back then. Having a child out of wedlock was a social taboo, and not only would the family name be smudged, but the child would be stigmatized as people saw a child born out of wedlock as damaged goods.

  Phoebe, always the quick thinker, planned an extensive vacation in a tiny village in France where the family sometimes vacationed. While they were there, Hannah was passed off as Phoebe so that even Justin’s birth certificate testified to the fact that Hannah’s son was a Grayson.

  Phoebe had told her husband, Jack, that she was pregnant and expecting their first child before she and Hannah had left for France. She told him that she had kept it from him because she wanted to be sure before she told him, because she knew how much he wanted children. Phoebe and Hannah left for vacation in April, and returned in October with Justin when he was a month old. Hannah played the part of the doting aunt, and Phoebe enjoyed being pampered as the proud mother of a baby boy.

  Shifting in her chair, Hannah opened her eyes. Patricia and Flannel sat talking quietly on the sofa, and Justin was nowhere around. She really worried about that boy. She had always been there for him, and never once did he suspect that she was his real mother. Not being able to tell Justin that she was his real mother was a burden she would always have to bear alone.

  Her heart quaked every time she thought that she needed to tell Justin who he really was. But, she never would or could do that. Justin was very proud of being a Grayson, and to find out from her, his real origins would cause him to hate her. It would hurt him, and the last thing she wanted to do was to hurt him. She would never tell.

  Justin would inherit the Grayson fortune along with Elizabeth. Hannah did not know how Patricia would fit into the outcome, but she was also Flannel Grayson’s niece. It was all Hannah could do to keep from starring at the girl with her mouth open the first time she saw her in the library. She was the shocking image of the girl in the portrait in the ballroom. A portrait she had enjoyed for years living at Grayson Manor.

  Hannah half-asleep, mourned her lost youth and the life she might have had if Jeff had married her. The circumstances around the way Justin was born, and the rejection and loss Hannah had felt, spoiled any thoughts Hannah ever had about romance. Her life was wrapped up in Justin and his future. Watching him grow and mature had been a joy. Now, she would be there for him whatever happened. Although her son was not a Grayson, he reminded her of the Grayson men when they were young. They had been men of importance living exciting lives where money was no object and the possibilities were exciting and endless.

  Hannah was comfortable where she sat with her head back against the chair, cozy in front of the fire. She revived enough to realize that it was getting late and she needed to go to her room where she could retire and dream of a world where her son was rich, important, and revered by all. Flannel walked with her to the stairs and Hannah continued up to her room alone.

  Chapter Twenty

  Because her outlook had changed concerning her future, Patricia decided to return to her home. She needed more of her things and she needed to check in at the accounting agency. She hoped to find something to wear to the party Saturday, and maybe she would look through her mother’s jewelry box. She might find something there to wear.

  The young girl found her uncle sitting on the patio adjacent to the rose garden and made herself comfortable in a chair beside him. Snuffles, following at her heals, put his head on Flannels lap as a greeting. Flannel, who had grown fond of the little dog, gave the little beggar a good rub down, while the girl, poured herself a glass of tea from the service, and then addressed her uncle. ”Uncle Flannel, I think that I will return home to Greenville for a couple of days.” “Oh yeah. What for?” he questioned.

  ”Well, here is the thing. I am going to need a party dress for the party we have planned for Saturday, and I don’t have any of my things here.” she finished. “Patricia, you are my niece. You can buy anything you need here. You are family. You can be pretty darn sure Elizabeth will be wearing a new dress,” an
d he laughed. “Uncle Flannel, I just need to get some of my things and regroup. I also need to check in at work. You know. I just need to make sure everything is running smoothly. We should both be safe with the authorities aware of the things that happened here. Besides, I won’t stay long. Maybe I will just stay a couple of days.” “Sure Patricia. You do what you have to do. Just watch yourself. We have both learned that we need to watch our backs,” he finished sounding concerned.

  “You could come with me.” She invited and smiled. “You can see where I live, and I will show you around the huge town of Greenville,” she laughed teasingly.

  ”Maybe I will visit another time Patricia. I had better stay here and help Hannah make sure this event we have planned for Saturday goes off all right. You do what you have to do.” Patricia rose from her chair, leaned in, and kissed her Uncle Flannel on the forehead, and then, giving him a reassuring smile, she left the patio with her little dog Snuffles right behind her. She could leave immediately. There wouldn’t be much packing to do because she would have everything she needed at home.